Seclusion
by Storm O
Summary: Duke takes Scarlett to Canada for a visit to his family’s cabin and a little alone time.


Disclaimers: General disclaimers apply. I don't own the GI Joe or the characters .

Author's Notes: A conversation from work sparked this fun little one-shot. The cabin does exist, albeit a few structural changes, like indoor plumbing. Thanks to Scarlett Phoenix for doing the beta work, and to her and Medic's positive, encouraging words. Read and enjoy.

**Seclusion**

The snow crunched underneath their feet as Duke and Scarlett walked up to the isolated cabin. The two Joes were bundled up like Eskimos as the frigid Canadian air tried to cut through their layers of clothing. With chattering teeth, Scarlett stuttered, "You know, there is a reason that I was born and raised in Atlanta. Just where are you taking me?"

Duke laughed and slid his arm across her shoulders, pulling her closer to him. "Shana, this isn't cold. Just be glad that it is not incredibly windy. The winds coming off the lake will freeze you in your footsteps, but I promise you that the hot tub will warm you up along with the roaring fire in the fireplace."

Scarlett shivered at the thought of the bitter cold winds that Duke spoke about. "Don't tease me," she retorted, elbowing Duke in the ribs through his heavy outerwear. "This cabin, which is in the middle of nowhere, has a hot tub?" she asked, her blue eyes dancing in the quickly diminishing daylight.

"Yes, we are not going completely primitive this weekend. It even has indoor plumbing instead of the standard outhouse that most of the neighbors have. My family has had this cabin for years. The fishing is fantastic, and tomorrow, I plan to take you on one of my infamous snowmobile trips," Duke teased.

Scarlett's laughter echoed through the frozen wilderness. "Oh no, Vince already warned me about your infamous snowmobile trips. You tried to feed him to the wild animals, almost sank the snowmobile in the supposedly frozen lake, and got you both lost in a blizzard because you thought you were Mr. 'I can brave the winter elements' Man," she mocked. "I think you two brothers need to spend some quality time together bonding. Maybe you can bring him up here next time and take him on that snowmobile outing."

"Vince won't come up here with me anymore. I don't know why," Duke lamented, grinning jokingly.

Their chatter quieted as they began to climb the steep hill to the cabin. Scarlett imagined this hike would be gorgeous and a nice trek during the summer, but in four feet of snow, the incline was strenuous to ascend, even for the two soldiers.

Once they made it to the top, Duke led her to the cabin. The natural lighting was gone, and Scarlett was thankful that Duke knew where he was going. Their flashlights suddenly landed on a dark object, which transpired into the cabin. Finding the entrance onto the porch, they both were relieved to be standing outside the door. Duke fumbled with the key and the frozen lock, before finally getting the stubborn door open. Shining his flashlight inside the dark cabin, as he had done on their entire trip here, he looked for reflective eyes staring back at him. "Stay close," he warned and led the way inside.

In her hurry to get inside away from the cold air, Scarlett wrapped her arms around Duke's waist from behind and pushed him inside. "I can't get any closer," she smirked.

A snicker rumbled from Duke's throat, and he patted her hands. "I bet you could," he slyly remarked as he listened to her chuckle. They proceeded inside, and Scarlett released her arms from around Duke and closed the door. Duke made his way to the rear of the small cabin. "Let's hope Randy has done routine maintenance on this ole backwoods cabin," he said as he flipped a switch.

A dull hum could be heard as the generators and propane tanks kicked on. Soon, the sparse lights flickered and a dull, yellow glow filled the tiny place.

Scarlett looked around the cabin, and her eyes stopped on a delicate porcelain table where a vase of artificial, dewdrop red roses sat on top of it. She caught her breath admiring how real they looked. Duke's mom made floral arrangements, and last Easter, Mrs. Falcone had made gorgeous arrangements for her and Jinx but quickly was prompted to make two more, one for Cover Girl and one for Lady Jaye. Her eyes then noticed that the rest of the furniture was all wood and handmade. "Wow," she whispered. "Did you and your dad make all this?"

"Yes, we did," Duke confirmed. "I'll be right back," he promised as he slipped outside on the deck, uncovered the hot tub, and kicked up the heat. Randy, the resident hermit, had dutifully started the hot tub sometime within the last twenty-four to forty-eight hours, and the water emitted bursts of steam.

While Duke was outside, Scarlett walked down the short hall. She found the surprisingly large bathroom, which housed an antique footed bathtub, and across the hall were two tiny bedrooms. She chuckled at the size of the bathroom compared to the bedrooms. Both bedrooms could fit inside the bathroom with room to spare. Heading back to the main part of the cabin, she looked at the tiny kitchenette, which housed a wood burning stove and a porcelain sink. She felt like she had been transported back to the days of _Little House on the Prairie_. There were no telephone or electrical outlets.

Duke retrieved an armful of wood for the fireplace and returned inside the cabin. As Scarlett walked back into the main room, he explained, "Before Dad passed away, Mom and I would spend most of the summer months up here with Dad. Dad and I would spend hours either fishing or carving and making furniture pieces. The nightstand in my quarters was the last piece that my dad made for me before he got too sick to carve."

Scarlett stepped over closer to Duke as he started the fire in the fireplace. "I'm glad that you have such happy memories with your father. I wish I could have known my mother better."

Duke stood up as the fire started to crackle. "Your father did a great job raising four kids," he confidently said, pulling her into a hug. Changing the subject, he suggested, "Are you ready to remove those bulky winter coats? It will get warm in here quickly."

Shaking her head, she teasingly pushed away from Duke, crossed her arms, and hugged herself. "Can't. Too cold," she shivered, winking at the First Sergeant, who was standing in front of her by the fireplace.

Laughing, Duke extended his arm, grasped her gloved hand, and pulled her towards him. "I think I can remedy that problem." He pulled her scarf away from her face so he could properly kiss her.

Scarlett returned his passionate kiss, feeling the room start to heat up. "I think that did the trick," she replied as Duke's fingers started to unsnap the closures on her winter coat. She shrugged out of her coat before Duke led her to a handmade rocker. Sitting down, she smiled warmly at him as he knelt down and slipped off her boots. His hands expertly rubbed her feet. As a soft moan escaped her lips, she reclined against the back of the rocking chair.

Duke stopped his sensual foot rub and stood up, leaning in and kissing her crimson lips before he took off his coat and boots. "The hot tub is ready whenever you are, my dear," he revealed with a gleam in his eye.

The redhead smiled back at the blond soldier. She pulled off her heavy wool sweater, letting her mane of hair cascade across her shoulders and down her back. "I think that sounds like a wonderful idea."

Duke eyed the stretch camisole, which clung to her body. "Well then, by all means, let's go enjoy the hot, bubbling water," he said, removing his sweatshirt and thermal undershirt.

The two quickly changed and grabbed some bath sheets and two robes. As soon as they stepped out into the cold outdoors, they hastily climbed into the torrid, steaming water. "Ahh," Scarlett exclaimed as she found a comfortable seat in front of a jet. She leaned her head against the frame of the hot tub. "Whose wonderful idea was it to install a hot tub up here?"

Duke smiled as he watched Scarlett relax against the wall of the hot tub. Her long, red hair had been conveniently pulled into a tight bun. He loved looking at her elegant neck since he rarely saw her with her hair in anything but a ponytail. "Believe it or not, Vince suggested it about five years ago for Mother's Day. Mom loves the one that they have at home, and Vince called me and told me that his dad hinted that a hot tub at the cabin would be a nice surprise. He always wants to come up here and enjoy the cabin during the winter, but Mom refuses to go because she can't stand the cold."

Scarlett opened her eyes and looked over at Duke. "But they come up here at least twice during the winter," she refuted.

"I know. The hot tub worked," Duke gloated, slipping his arm around Scarlett's waist and pulling her over to him.

"Oh yeah, you boys just wanted the hot tub so you could promise your girlfriends wonderful weekends in the undomesticated country of Canada," Scarlett playfully retorted, laughing as Duke's fingers tickled her stomach.

"That's the plan, Shana. How many times has Vince come up here?" Duke queried, arching an eyebrow.

"I don't want to know, but each time, the accompanying girlfriend better have been Jinx," she warned, matching Duke's serious facial expression.

Chortling, Duke shook his head. "He has been up here plenty of times, and at least the last few times, our petite ninja has accompanied him. Before that, I plead the Fifth." He winked at his girlfriend, before continuing, "Somehow, our planned excursions up here always get waylaid. I thought of offering Dash and Allie or Ron and Courtney the keys to use it sometime, but I wanted us to enjoy it first."

Scarlett chuckled. "That is very wise of you, Mister. Before you go offering this place out to every Joe on base, I want us to enjoy it too. Although," she paused thoughtfully, "you may have some trouble dragging Dash away from Martha's Vineyard. I heard that he has taken quite a liking to the beautiful gardens. And, Ron and Courtney seem to be content spending their leave time in Vegas."

Duke nodded. "I think they all would enjoy it, but you are away from all means of civilization. Cell phones, pagers, and laptops do not work up here. With Ron's mom being ill, I would hate to have them come up here and something happen to Momma Rudat. As far as Dash is concerned, it is very peaceful and serene up here. He would like it, if he could talk Allie into it."

"She'd come. She likes the outdoors as much as Dash," Scarlett seriously informed.

"Are you sure?" he teased as the redhead's quick hand slapped his arm. "It is always this quiet and a wonderful place to come to leave all of your troubles behind. Nothing electric works up here. The nearest cabin is three miles away, and Randy lives another two miles past that. He takes care of the empty cabins, sort of our unofficial caretaker. In turn, everyone that owns a cabin offers him money or other gifts for his trouble. He hasn't paid a propane bill in years that I know of. He has lived up here his entire life, preferring to commune with nature."

"Nice," Scarlett replied, leaning against Duke's shoulder and thinking about the simple life. "From in here, it doesn't feel so cold."

"As soon as we get out, we'll hotfoot it back inside. We can let the fire dry us off," Duke revealed as he leaned over and kissed Scarlett's forehead.

Scarlett felt the gentle kiss, and a small sigh escaped from her lips. Looking away from the cabin, she couldn't see anything but the twinkling stars and a sliver of the moon. "This is so tranquil. It's hard to believe how dark the night really is. We are so use to electricity and lights. I bet this is something to see when there is a full moon."

Nodding his head, Duke said, "It is wonderful. Everything shines in the moonlight's glow. During the winter, it is really bright up here with the moon reflecting off the snow, and you can actually see all the wildlife roaming around at night."

Scarlett snaked her arm around Duke's waist as she turned slightly to face him. The timer had shutoff, and the water had ceased its pounding jets and bubbles. "So, how about we head back inside?" she suggested wistfully.

"If you say so, Love," Duke replied, bending down to kiss her fully on the lips.

They quickly climbed out of the hot water, wrapped the bath sheets and robes around themselves, and hurried inside. Once inside, Duke led her to the fireplace, and they both settled down on the humongous bear rug. Scarlett shook her head. "Please tell me that _he_ was not real at one time."

Duke laughed at her question and her furrowed eyebrow. "Shana, I'm afraid he was, years ago. But don't worry, Mr. Grizzly Bear did not die at any of the Hausers or Falcones' hands." He rubbed her robe-clad shoulders as she sat close to the fire. The terry cloth was damp from absorbing the water from their hot tub visit.

Scarlett leaned back against Duke, closing her eyes and feeling the strong yet gentle massages. She sighed contentedly and didn't notice that the soothing caresses had stopped at first. "Why'd you stop?" she questioned, sounding brokenhearted as she opened her eyes.

Duke scooted around beside her. "Do you really want me to continue?" He countered, his hands reaching out and grabbing the sash to her robe.

"Let me think," she softly replied, the corners of her mouth starting to form a smile. "How about this?" she suggested, leaning closer to him and brushing her lips against his.

A low growl of want and desire rumbled in Duke's chest as he deepened the kiss. His tongue slipped inside Scarlett's mouth. She willingly returned the passionate kiss as she felt herself being lowered backwards onto the bear rug.

In front of the roaring hearth, the two soldiers slowly and fervently made love into the night. When they were utterly exhausted, Duke grabbed a throw blanket from the nearby rocking chair and covered their breathless bodies. He quickly stoked the fire and then joined Scarlett under the blanket.

She snuggled against Duke's chest, using it as a pillow. "I love you, Conrad," Scarlett murmured, the renewed embers from the fire sparkling in her eyes and casting dancing shadows on the cabin's walls.

"I love you, Shana," Duke replied, wrapping his arms around her and rubbing her smooth skin with his fingertips. They both drifted off to sleep, warm and toasty inside as the cold, winter weather stayed outside.


End file.
